Saturday, April 14, 2012

IELTS Grammar: punctuation

Here are some simple rules to help you with punctuation for IELTS writing:

Full stopsFull stops are very important. Put a clear full stop at the end of each sentence, and then begin the next sentence with a capital letter. If you don't do this, you will get a low score.

Commas

When you start a sentence with these words, put a comma after them:Nowadays, Recently, Firstly, Secondly, Finally, Furthermore, In addition, Also, However, By contrast, On the other hand, In my opinion,...

We use commas in lists:e.g. This problem affects individuals, communities and society in general.

We don't usually put a comma after the word "that":e.g. It is clear that the rate of immigration increased.

Don't worry about other uses of commas. The use of a comma is often optional in other situations.

ApostrophesAvoid contractions in IELTS writing. Use "do not" instead of "don't".You may sometimes need to show possession e.g. the government's decision.

Other punctuationYou don't really need to use any other punctuation in IELTS writing.My advice is to avoid trying to use colons and semicolons.

Hi dear Simon
I appreciated to let me know in first type of questions(opinion)az you told 'you don't have to give both sides of the argument ' ,does it mean if I devide this subject to two views like an argument and then I express my view(some of the people hold the opinion...In contrast,others think),it makes my structure wrong?
I know how many times this question have been asked but actually this subject is so controversial due to I found various views which make me confused! really thanks for your help

Hi Simon
You r doing great job for ielts studen.Today I've received my result I've got 7 in speaking, 6.5 listening but I shocked to see my writing reading with 4.5.Although I was not expecting good band I readings bcoz it was really dificult I couldn't manage time wisely but my writing was ok I did second task according to question,question was about both sides of view about the effects of computer games on children. I wrote four paragraphs introduction,second for against views,third in the favour and finally,gave my balance opinion but first task was bit difficult its was about the number of people per km2 in between 2003 and five. Might be I couldn't illustrate properly.its was two bar chart and was very strange two but I try to 3xplain it according to advice I do not know I've got low scores in writing and in addition I had used extra abbey for writing but I didn't write my candidate no it and attach as well.the lady said she will manage it but I think they lost my Extra sheet.I need ur advice what I need to do for next test.can ask them for re-check for my writing or not.plz reply me on weekend.

could u give any ideas about this topic in writing task 2 topic? please
In many countries men and women are working. It is therefore logical that men should share household tasks with women(e.g cleaning and looking after children)
To what extent do you agree or disagree?

This is Candy. I am just wondering what, "DO NOT USE BULLET/NOTE FORM. For instance, "There are a variety of reasons why there is an enormous amount of garbage in our environment. These include the following: people’s lack of obedience, insufficient understanding about right junk dumping and the big number of big industries." Is this allowed? Thank you very much. Also, "such as but not limited to:"